20 Questions Book Tag

I've had this tag post sitting in my drafts waiting to be answered for over a year, so I thought it was about time I gave it a go. 

I can't remember if I was tagged, or if I stumbled up on the post somewhere, but there are twenty bookish questions, and I'm going to answer them honestly. If you want to know what my favourite books are, how I feel about cliff-hangers, or who my favourite author is, than keep reading!

I give you the 20 Questions Book Tag.

How many books is too many in a series?

It depends on how much I'm enjoying the series. I think my preferred length is probably three; that gives you a decent amount of reading time with your favourite characters, and plenty of time for the story and characters to develop without getting stale. Any more than three and I often find a series loses its quality and my attention. If I'm really enjoying a series, though, I will take as many books as I can get!

How do you feel about cliff-hangers?

Oh, I hate them so much! I despair at having to wait a year or two (or worse, years) until the next book is released to find out what happens next. I can live with them if I have the next book in the series waiting to be read, but I like a story to be neatly wrapped up by the last page of a book, with an ending that leaves room for a sequel without leaving me in suspense.

Hard-copy or paperback?

I love a pretty hardback and enjoy collecting them, but I actually prefer reading from paperbacks. I just find them easier to hold with my arthritis since they're lighter and smaller than most hardbacks- plus they're easier to carry around with me on the go, usually cost less, and generally take us less space on the bookshelf. Paperbacks are definitely underrated!

Favourite book?

It's a tie between The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, The Stand by Stephen King, and The Light of the Fireflies by Paul Pen. I also have a soft spot for Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, Our Endless Numbered Days by Clare Fuller, and The One by John Marrs.

Least favourite book?

It has got to be The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks. I read it in my early twenties after enjoying the movie, and it was without a doubt the most boring, badly written piece of crap I've read in my life. Even by Nicholas Sparks' standards, it was awful.

Love triangles, yes or no?

Yes, I guess. They can be pretty entertaining- at least until you feel devastated for the good guy who gets his heart broken when the other two finally get together.

The most recent book you just couldn't finish?

The Colour of Bee Larkham's Murder by Sarah J. Harris. I started reading it in late autumn, and must have set it down after about 70 pages as I found the voice of the main character, a thirteen-year-old boy with autism, face-blindness, and synaesthesia (a condition where the stimulation of one sense evokes another sense), so annoying. Even though it wasn't his fault, he was coming across as a whiny brat. I'm going to try to go back to it at some point, as the storyline sounds interesting and unique, and it was beautifully written, but right now I don't have the patience for the whiny narrative.

A book you're currently reading?

I've just finished reading The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, and have moved on to a psychological thriller called What Remains by Tim Weaver. It's book six in the David Raker Missing Persons series, which I've really been enjoying over the last few months.

Last book you recommended to someone?

The sequel to the Tattooist of Auschwitz, Cilka's Journey by Heather Morris. It's an amazing but absolutely devastating novel based on the true story of Cilka Klein, a young Jewish girl who survived three years at Auschwitz Birkeneau being raped by Nazi commanders and doing what she had to to survive, only to be sentenced to fifteen years in a Siberian work camp on liberation. Why? She was accused of being a Nazi collaborator and a spy by the Soviet Army for simply being multi-lingual and having hair on her head, when all she had done was endure years of sexual abuse as a Nazi's play-thing from the age of thirteen. Cilka was sent to Vorkuta, a brutal work camp in the arctic circle where, like Auschwitz, she also endured hard labour, starvation, rape, and poor living conditions, along with the bitterly cold Siberian climate. She was just sixteen. In time, she befriended a female doctor, and began working in the hospital where she thrived nursing the sick back to health, and helping babies in the nursery. While her jobs saved her from hard labour at the mines and earned her some small 'privileges', I'd be lying if I said her life in the camp suddenly improves from here. It's a harrowing tale, and utterly heart breaking- two months after reading it and my emotions still haven't quite recovered- but it's so well written, and a compelling read I'd encourage every adult to read. I couldn't put it down, and flew through it in two days. I didn't know much about Vorkuta or Soviet work camps before reading this book, but it's opened my eyes, and makes me want to learn / read more about what happened there.

Oldest book you've read?

I'm not a hundred percent certain, but probably one of the Shakespeare plays we studied at school like The Merchant of Venice, which our good friend Google says was written in 1596. Actually, now that I think about it, it must be The Bible. I'm not religious, but I was raised catholic as my Dad and his side of the family all are, so I went to a catholic primary school where we had to go to church, as well as read and learn passages from The Bible during R.E. lessons. (Not that I can remember any of it now). I absolutely hated it. I tried to relate, but even as a child, I knew religion wasn't for me.

The newest book you've read?

Cilka's Journey by Heather Morris. It was released in October and I read it in November.

Favourite author?

I'm not sure I could choose just one favourite author. At the moment, I'm loving anything by John Marrs, Paul Pen, Clare Mackintosh, and Frances Hardinge, and I've also been a big fan of Stephen King and Chuck Palahniuk's books since my teens. I love Audrey Niffenegger's writing style, too, but can I call her a favourite when I've only read two of her books? It's been ages since she last released anything.

Buying books or borrowing books?

I prefer to buy books because I like to own my own copies, and see my bookshelves grow and swell with books I've read and enjoyed. I do borrow books from people from time to time, and I loved borrowing books from the library growing up, but I admit I haven't checked anything out since my early teens. I really should reregister, and start using it again.

A book you dislike that everyone seems to like?

IT by Stephen King. As much as I've loved every other Stephen King novel I've ever read, I just could not get in to it. I found it really slow and boring, and lacking the thrill of his other books. I don't get the hype at all. Give me The Stand or The Tommyknockers any day!

Bookmarks or dog-ears?

I'm a bookmark kind of girl. Anyone who dog-ears books is clearly a psychopath.

A book you can always re-read?

The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, and The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. I've read them all several times to date, and I'm currently tempted to re-read them all again.

Can you read whilst hearing music?

Only if it's not too loud and not too heavy. I find it really hard to switch off and concentrate on what I'm reading when there's a lot of noise around me. I prefer to read in silence or with the music / TV on low in the background.

One POV or multiple POVs?

I think I prefer multiple POVs- as long as there aren't too many of them. I enjoy reading from different perspectives, getting to know the characters better, and following their different storylines within the main story.

Do you read a book in one sitting or over multiple days?

Unless the book is short (say, less than 250 pages) or I'm on holiday, I usually read books over multiple days. I can read a book in two days, but getting through a whole 400 page plus book in twenty-four hours is very rare for me.

One book you read because of the cover?

I can't think of a single book I've read because of the cover.  A pretty or interesting book cover might lure me in, but I always choose books based on the blurb.

And that's the 20 Questions Book Tag.

I tag... anybody who wants to have a go!

If you decide to give the tag a go, make sure you leave me a link to your post in the comments, as I'd love to read your answers to the questions!

What are you currently reading?